Written in the stars
by iluvdarts
Summary: This is my first attempt at writting so please don't shoot me if it's really bad. This is a CathSara pairing. Mature content and FEMSLASH in later chapters. What happen's when Sara's past returns? Final chapter now up!
1. Chapter 1

-1**DISCLAIMER: I DO NOT OWN CSI OR ANY OF THE CHARACTERS. I AM JUST BORROWING THEM AND I PROMISE TO HAVE THEM HOME SHORTLY. MATURE CONTENT AND FEMSLASH IN LATER CHAPTERS. YOU HAVE BEEN WARNED.**

SPOV IS FROM SARA'S POINT OF VIEW. CPOV IS FROM CATHERINE'S POINT OF VIEW

Chapter 1

SPOV

I can't believe it. Today is my 35th birthday. I never thought I would even live to see this day considering my past. As I sit at home I know I should be enjoying the fact that I have the night off but as usual I don't even want to think about this day as any different from the rest, so I know I'm not going to be celebrating it in any way. Instead I'm sitting here thinking about the one thing I shouldn't be thinking about, her!

I've always known I was gay but I know that she is straight, to top it all off she's a work colleague. We've never really got on in the past though in the last month or so things have been better between us.

Usually I can stop myself thinking about this but that is because I can usually bury myself in a case I'm working on, even if we're working together, but today with nothing else to distract me I find myself thinking about all the things I love about her. I love her eyes, god I could get lost in the deep blues pools of her eyes, and those lips, I just can't imagine what it feels like to kiss them. The way she walks, so confident and the way she handles herself even with the most difficult of suspects. Even when she's at her most vulnerable I just want to hold her and let her know that everything is alright.

Suddenly I was pulled out of my daydream by the phone.

"Hello"

"Sara, it's Grissom, look I know its your day off but we're swamped and could really use your help for a few hours, please" he said with his usual directness.

"Sure, why not" I replied after thinking about it "I wasn't doing anything anyways"

"Great, see you soon" he says before hanging up.

Well at least now I can bury all these thoughts again and I can forget that it is by birthday.

CPOV

"Gill, are you sure that she'll come in?" I asked

"Catherine, this is Sara we're talking about, you know she can't turn down work" he replied

"Yes, but it's her birthday, who would want to work on their birthday?" I say trying to make my point.

"I know Catherine" he replied "But trust me, I'll get her here don't worry"

With that Gill walked off to his office to ring Sara whilst I was left wondering if everything was going to work.

I made my way back to the break room to make sure that everything and everyone was ready. Getting Sara here on false pretences was one matter but whether the surprise we had for her would go down well was another matter. I knew I had to stay sober tonight, I didn't want her to find out my feelings for her, I mean she's straight. You only had to look at her past relationship with Hank and her feelings for Gill to see that. I didn't want to put our new found friendship to the test by blurting out that I love her when I'm drunk.

I found myself lost in my thoughts over her when Gill came back to the break room.

"She's on her way" he stated "I'll go and wait for her and bring her along as soon as she arrives." With that he walked out leaving me and the rest of the guys waiting.

Gathered in the break room was Greg, Warrick, Nick and myself all waiting to throw Sara her surprise birthday party.


	2. Chapter 2

-1**DISCLAIMER IS THE SAME AS CHAPTER 1**

Chapter 2

SPOV  
Pulling up to the office I notice that everyone's cars are still here but that doesn't mean anything, they could all be working on evidence in the labs. As I go to grab my purse I notice I've left it at home. Never mind, I can't see me needing any money anyways. I've got my pager, phone and keys so what else do I really need. On entering the building I catch Gill as he's walking through the hallway. He say's I'm needed in the break room so we make our way there in a comfortable silence. I notice some of the day staff still working but that doesn't mean much. Gill did say we were swamped and it wouldn't be the first time any of us had pulled a double.

CPOV

Having been spying out the door I was able to notice Sara and Gill walking up the corridor towards us and I couldn't help but notice how beautiful she looked in her black leather pants, that hugged her legs in all the right places, and that blue top, that was low enough to show a bit of cleavage but still covered enough to be decent for work.

As the four of us gathered in front of the table pretending to be involved in a case so that we blocked the view of the party I hear the door open behind me. As Sara steps into the room we all turn round and step away from the table shouting "Happy Birthday Sara."

I stood there and watched as Sara struggled to find her words. I mean who would have thought we could stun Sara Sidle into silence.

SPOV

Oh my god, I can't believe it. They've thrown me a surprise birthday party. I didn't even know that they knew it was my birthday. I know that they are waiting for a reaction.

"Thanks guys, this is such a nice surprise." I manage to say.

They all step forward one at a time and give me a big hug.

"It gets better" Catherine says "The day shift are covering tonight so we're all going out to that new club that opened last week to continue the celebrations."

"I can't go I haven't got my wallet" I say desperately trying to get out of it .I hate my birthday.

"No problems" says Greg "you're not paying for anything anyways so you won't need any money."

Looking round I know that I'm fighting a losing battle so I give in graciously. Gill had already left as he was still required to work but everyone else was pushing me towards the presents on the table.

Nick and Warrick had clubbed together and bought me the set of books on 'Profiling the Criminal Mind' that I'd been talking about getting. Greg, being closer to me than the others, knew that I wanted some new strings for my guitar and he also managed to get hold of a rare copy of some music that I'd been searching for. As I opened this I rewarded him with a huge smile and a big hug. I was starting to think that birthdays weren't that bad after all.

The biggest surprise was Catherine's gift as I opened it I saw a beautiful crystal and gold clock. I never knew that Catherine even knew that I wanted one. I was sure that I had never mentioned it to her. I guess my face said as much when I heard Catherine speak up.

"I hope you like it" She said nervously.

"Cat, I love it!" I answered honesty and got a huge smile in return despite having used a nickname she detested.

"How did you know I wanted one?" I asked.

"I didn't really" she replied "I just saw it and thought it was you so I bought it"

Looking at her face I saw something flash across almost like a look of love but as it was gone so quick I though I must have been dreaming.

"Well, thank you so much" I said pulling her into another hug.

I was interrupted by a huge pop as Greg opened the champagne and we sat around talking and drinking for a while as it was too early to head out.

I was lost in my thoughts for a while, I mean I can't believe that they've all taken the night off for me, no-one has ever done anything like this for me before.

CPOV

I noticed a sad look flash across Sara's face and I placed my hand on her shoulder.

"What's wrong?" I asked hoping she would talk to me. I know that we aren't the closest of friends but I hoped she would talk to me.

"I…It's just…no-ones ever done this for me before" she replied

I couldn't help but wonder at her past but now wasn't the time to push the issue.

"Well, we wanted to show you how much we care about you so don't get down just enjoy yourself" I stated.

I soon got the trademark Sidle smirk and I knew she was ok.

A little later we all piled into my car and made out way to the club.


	3. Chapter 3

-1**DISCLAIMER IS THE SAME AS CHAPTER 1**

**A/N: **Thanks for the reviews so far. It has inspired me to keep writing.

Here are the next few chapters for you.

A/N2: All mistakes and British ways of writing are mine, I don't have anyone checking over my shoulder.

A/N3: The whole knocking back pints comes from my own experiences at uni where I was the champion of my rugby team, seriously 3 seconds is not that hard!

Chapter 3

SPOV

Whilst the others went to the bar I was left with Greg which normally I wouldn't mind but he had this look on his face which meant that he knew something.

"How long Sara?" He asked

"How long What?" I replied confused.

"How long have you been in love with Catherine?" He asked again with a smirk.

I was shocked, how on earth did he know?

"I…but…What?!" I spluttered.

"You heard me" he replied

Knowing I was caught and I had to answer before the others returned I told him straight.

"Since I first met her" I stated simply "But how the hell did you know?"

"After all these years of you turning me down and the way you were after fights I worked it out." He said "Don't worry though I don't think anyone else knows and I wont tell them I promise."

"I know you wouldn't Greg" I said with a smile.

The rest of the gang returned then and drinking started with a vengeance.

CPOV

I could tell that Sara and Greg were really close but I knew it was just a strong friendship. It didn't help me wonder what they were talking about though. Greg was smiling whilst Sara was clearly embarrassed about something. I was also jealous of the fact that he seemed to know her so well when she wasn't an easy person to read.

As I watched the four of them get drunker and drunker it was quite funny to see them act so childish.

They decided that it would be fun to play truth or dare. I knew being sober I could manage to lie if I needed but I thought this would be a good chance to try and find out more about Sara so I was in.

Since it was Sara's birthday she went first.

"HEy Greg, truth or dare?" she asked.

"Dare!" he replied with a grin.

SPOV

I had to think about Greg's dare. I mean I could dare him to kiss one of the guys but that would cause him to retaliate and make me kiss Catherine.

"OK, I dare you…… to knock back your pint in one go!" I said

I knew if he made me do the same I would have no problems. I was the champion of downing in my college days when I was on the baseball team.

Greg looked at me weirdly as if he was expecting something different but agreed none the less. It took him 15 seconds to knock back his pint which meant the challenge was on. We sidetracked of truth or dare for a few minutes whilst both Warrick and Nick knocked back their pints. Nick finished in 8 seconds which was 1 second faster than Warrick. I sat there shaking my head which didn't go unnoticed by Catherine.

"Alright, smarty pants" she said to me "Your turn seeing as you think the guys are too slow, you try and better nick's time."

I gave her a trademark smirk as she played right into my hands.

"Give me a countdown Greg" I said.

"3...2...1...GO!" he shouted.

They all had to pick their jaws up off the floor as I finished my pint in under 4 seconds.

"Still got it" I stated to no-one in particular.

"What…How….You're amazing" said Greg.

"I used to do this all the time with the baseball team in college." I replied "As my team mates, they'll tell you, I wasn't called 3 second sidle for nothing. Remind me to show you the pictures sometime"

I realised that I had shared more about myself in the last 5 minutes than I had in the last few years but who cared. With a shrug I turned and signalled the waitress to bring us some more beers.

"Let's get back to the game, Greg its your turn" I said.

For the next few hours we kept ourselves entertained with the game and lots of drinking. I knew I was probably saying too much about myself but I was drunk so I didn't really care. That was when the stakes were upped.

"Ok, Nick" say's Catherine "truth or dare?"

"Truth" replies Nick.

"Who would you like to date in work?" asks Catherine.

I smiled as I thought about the blond goddess sitting next to me without realising it.

"Truthfully? I like Sophia" said Nick

I'd already kind of guessed that but it was nice to hear it coming from his mouth in confirmation. Seeing me smile Nick decided to pick on me.

"Truth or dare, Sidle" he asks.

"Truth" I replied after thinking about it for a while.

"Who would you like to date in work?" he asks

"Catherine" I replied without thinking before slapping my hand over my mouth. Shit too much alcohol and my mouth had run away from me. A quickly sobered up after that announcement. I look round at the shocked faces, I guess they expected me to say Grissom. Greg was surprised too but that was probably because he knew that I didn't want everyone knowing. Looking at Catherine I realised I had to get out of there and fast.

"umm, bye guys" I said as I ran out the club and started running home. I didn't want anyone coming after me so I ran for a while.


	4. Chapter 4

-1**DISCLAIMER IS THE SAME AS CHAPTER 1.**

A/N: sorry this chapter is quite short but there are more coming I promise. I've got the next few written I just need to type them up and post them onto the site. Thanks to anyone who is still reading this story. I promise that Sara's past is coming back soon but I just wanted to establish the relationship slightly first.

Chapter 4

SPOV

I stopped running after a while and thought about ringing a taxi until I remembered I had no money and my phone battery had died. It was then that the heavens decided to open and I was drenched in an instant. I decided that I might as well walk home now as I was already wet but as I got to the park I was crying so hard I had to sit on the bench. I wasn't one to cry normally but I was so embarrassed about what had happened I couldn't help myself. I don't know how long I sat there for lost in my thoughts about my sad life but as I sat there releasing all the sorrow and anger that had been building within I noticed the rain slowly stop falling and the clouds begin to disappear.

Looking up into the now clear sky I could see the moon in all its glory, surrounded by hundreds of stars. The night had turned so calm and peaceful and it was if, even fro a second, time had stood still. As I gazed up at the stars they seemed so close that I felt as if I could almost touch them. Reaching up my hand I marvelled at the amazing beauty of it all. As the serenity of it all passed over me I knew things were going to be ok and I set off to walk to last mile home.


	5. Chapter 5

-1**DISCLAIMER HAS NOT CHANGED SINCE CHAPTER 1.**

A/N: this is going to be the last update for a few days. I'm back in work tonight so I won't have much time to write. I'll get some more up soon, I promise. Please review, even criticism keeps me going.

Chapter 5

CPOV

Did she just say what I thought she said? I couldn't get my head straight. I saw her look at me. She said something I didn't catch before running out the door. Before I could say anything Greg was up after her like a shot. It wasn't long before he came back with a dejected look on his face.

"Man, can that girl run when she wants to" he said "I couldn't find her anywhere"

"Hey Guys," I said finally getting my mouth to work "You ok getting a taxi home? I've got to find Sara and make sure that she's ok."

"Sure" replied Warrick before I dashed out of the door. I didn't care what they were thinking right now I was just focused on Sara and what I needed to say to her. I ran to my car and got in just before it started to rain. I knew that she had no money so I figured I would catch her at her home.

As I drove there I wondered about what I was going to say. I mean I never thought she would want me but now I was hoping there was a chance though I needed to find her first. I've only been to her apartment once before but like everything about Sara I remembered exactly where I was going. I kept my eyes open as I looked to see if I could find Sara on my drive to her house. I didn't see her at all on the drive over but she would have been able to cut through the park which I couldn't do in the car.

It didn't rain for long and by the time I pulled up outside her place it had stopped. I jumped out of the car pausing long enough to grab my bag and lock the doors before running up the three flights of stairs to her apartment. I rang the bell and thumped on the door. I kept going for about 10 minutes but if she was in their she wasn't going to open up.

I turned to leave and came face to face with the woman that was currently occupying my thoughts. As she saw me there she turned to leave but I couldn't let her.

"Sara, Wait!" I cried. She stopped and turned round but kept her eyes on the ground.

"Cat, I'm sorry, I…" she started

"Don't be sorry" I interrupted "I feel the same way." There I did it I finally told her how I felt.

"What?!" she said her head snapping up to look at me.

"I feel the same way" I repeated stepping closer to her "I've wanted to go out with you for so long but I didn't want to scare you" I smiled at her trying to work things out in her head.

"Why do you think I started that line of questioning with Nick? I wanted to know if you still had feelings for Gill" I continued "I never in my wildest dreams thought you would ever like me" now it was my turn to look away.

SPOV  
I heard what she said and saw her look away from me.

"Cat, why wouldn't I like you? I said placing my hand under her chin so that she was forced to look at me "you are a beautiful, sexy and confident woman, everyone likes you"

"You ever noticed that you're the only one who gets away with calling me Cat?" she said smiling.

I smiled back despite shivering from the cold and wet.

"Let's go inside" I said "I really need to change into something less wet" I gestured at my soaking wet clothes as I said this. I made my way to the front door and opened it up. I told Catherine to make herself comfortable as I want to the bedroom to find some dry clothes.


	6. Chapter 6

-1**DISCLAIMER IS THE SAME AS CHAPTER 1.**

A/N: Thanks for all your reviews. Here are the next few chapters as promised. I'll have you all know that I'm forgoing sleep to get these to you. Working nights is a killer.

A/N2: in reply to your review iluvsarasidle I didn't even think about the image of a wet Sara when I wrote that chapter but I do now thanks to you and what a good image it is.

A/N3: Sorry Amelie N didn't mean to leave it without a kiss but I promise one is coming soon!!!!

Chapter 6

CPOV

As Sara took off for the bedroom I walked around her open kitchen/living room area. I didn't know quite what to expect but it was completely her style. I found myself looking at the pictures on her wall and shelves. There were no pictures of herself as a child or her parents which I wondered about but I did see the famous baseball pictures. I saw a picture of her stood on the mound waiting to pitch next to a picture of the whole team raising a trophy. I also saw one of Sara finishing a pint, obviously in a competition as the digital clock behind her read 2.45 seconds. I chuckled as I realised she wasn't kidding about being able to finish a pint that quickly. As I took a closer look I could see the name on her shirt, '3sec sidle'. I noticed a group of pictures on the shelves that were taken of everybody at work. There was even one of the two of us that I didn't remember being taken. There were also pictures of her rock climbing, biking and hiking. I briefly wondered who was the one to take the pictures but was soon interrupted.

"Coffee?" Sara asked making her way to the kitchen.

"Please" I replied joining her.

After the coffee was ready we went and sat on the couch.

"I guess we should talk" sara said

"Yeah, I guess we should." I replied.

After a few minutes silence Sara started to speak.

"I like you Cat," sara says "I like you a lot and I would love to pursue a relationship with you and see where it leads."

"So do I" I reply "Though I'm sensing a but at the end of your sentence"

"you're right there is ." said sara truthfully "I just…What about Lindsey? I don't want her to be uncomfortable with all this she's had a hard enough time lately as it is what with her dad and all."

I smiled as I realised I'd met someone who actually gave a damn about my daughter and what she thought.

"Truthfully sara, I don't think she'd mind" I say with a smirk as I know I'm going to shock her with my next few words "It's never bothered her when I've dated women before so why should it bother her now!"

Sara's mouth dropped just as I expected it to.

"You've dated women before?" she asks shocked.

"Only a few" I reply "besides Lindsey loves you and you know it"

I got a huge smile back as Sara realised that she returned those affections wholeheartedly.

"So where do we go from here?" she asks

"Well" I replied "how about I take you to dinner later as our 1st official date? We can go about 7 and still be in work on time"

"You not seeing Lindsey later?" she asks

"Nope, once she's at school I wont see her for a week, she's going camping with the school." I explained

"Great, it's a date" she says "But you'll have to pick me up as my car is at work"

"No Problem" I answer.

I slowly make my way towards her and I place a soft, gentle kiss on her lips which she immediately returned. It was the way first kisses should always be.

"I've got to go" I say reluctantly after we had moved apart. "I must get some sleep before making sure Lindsey's all set for her trip"

We share another gentle kiss before I head out of the door and home. I can't help but wonder how wonderful things have turned out.

SPOV

She kissed me! Twice! I can't believe the woman of my dreams kissed me and wants to pursue a relationship with me. My mind is spinning. I make my way to the bedroom hoping for once that I wont wake from the nightmares of my past. I slowly drop off thinking maybe birthdays aren't so bad after all.


	7. Chapter 7

-1**DISCLAIMER HASN'T CHANGED SINCE CHAPTER 1.**

A/N: coffee coffee coffee coffee. I desperately need coffee to stay awake and type these for you all. Wouldn't you know it I'm all out of coffee, arghhhhhhhh. Well it's time for the first date, hope you are enjoying the story so far.

A/N2: I am not medically trained in any way but I've cared for people with epilepsy so I thought I'd throw it in as it would be useful in later chapters. Anything you don't understand about it let me know and I'll try and explain it to you.

Chapter 7

SPOV

God my head hurts. How much did I drink last night? I don't know if it's true but I swear Catherine asked me for a date last night. Part of me wants to believe its true but most of me thinks it was just a dream. Dragging myself out of bed I quickly shower before making my way into the kitchen for some much needed coffee. I notice 2 used mugs on the side, one of them showing signs of lipstick, Catherine's colour to be exact. Maybe it wasn't a dream after all. I smiled to myself thinking about the curvy blonde when my phone goes. Without looking at who it is I answer automatically.

"Sidle"

"Hey you" I hear Catherine's sweet voice replying "How's your head this morning? Or should I say this afternoon as it's gone 12"

"Sore" I replied "though quickly fading now I've heard your voice"

I grinned widely at the chuckle from the other end of the phone.

"That'll teach you to drink so much and to try and keep up with the guys" she said

"I think you'll find it was the guys keeping up with me" I retorted

"What ever you say '3sec sidle' I was just ringing to confirm our plans for tonight, that is if you still want to go now that you're sober."

I could hear the doubt in her voice as if she was expecting me to have changed my mind.

"Of course I want to, if you still want to" I quickly reply.

"I definitely still want to" came her answer.

"Good, then I better go find something to wear. Do you know how hard it is to dress for both a date and work at the same time?" I said

"I know what you mean" she replied "but no need to go too fancy, where we are going isn't that posh"

"Where are we going?" I ask curiously.

"Just wait and see" she says "I'll see you later"

With that she hung up the phone and I was left deliberating what I was going to wear.

I spent the afternoon running a few errands and tidying my flat before getting ready to go out. After a hour I decided to wear my tight black jeans and a sexy low cut top. I thought it would just about pass muster for work but if not I've always got a change of clothes in my locker.

Right on 7pm my doorbell went and unable to withhold the grin on my face I answered it.

"Hi" I say softly

"Hey" she replied "wow, you look amazing"

"So do you" I replied as I took in her appearance. I slowly drew my eyes up her body from her knee high boots, short black skirt and white shirt which had the top few buttons undone.

"Ready?" she asked

"YEp" I replied gathering my belongings and locking my door.

As I was about to walk down the stairs she took hold of my arm and pulled me in for a short sweet kiss.

"I've been wanting to do that all day" she said

I smiled hugely before returning the favour and pulling her in for another kiss. We then headed down to the car hand in hand.

CPOV

I was really nervous about our date but as soon as I took hold of her hand I relaxed. We both got into the car and I drove us to a nearby Italian restaurant. Once we were seated we both ordered soft drinks as we were in work later. Sara ordered the vegetarian ravioli and I ordered the spaghetti bolognaise. We talked about work to start with but we soon ended up talking about our pasts. Sara spoke about college and her baseball days. She even told me that since she was little she's had epilepsy which she can control with tegratol. She says only a extremely stressful situation would cause her to have a seizure if she takes her medication. When I asked why she had it she just replied because of her childhood but when I tried to talk about her childhood she went really quiet.

"What's wrong?" I asked seeing the look of pain on her face.

"I can't talk about that" she replied honesty "It's just…it's…I can't I'm sorry" she looked away from me ashamed.

"Hey" I said "I'm sorry, I didn't mean to pry. If you don't want to talk about it I understand" I gave her hand a squeeze and I gave her a small smile when she looked at me.

"Thanks" she said "One day I may be ready"

"When and if you want to talk I'm here" I said before turning the topic onto a happier subject.

"I've just remembered, we've got a baseball game against the day shift next week and I wondered if you wanted to play" I ask

"I'd love to" she said

"Great! I'll tell Brass to sign you up when we get to work" I replied

"Speaking of work, what do we tell the guys? She asked

"Well, maybe we don't tell them anything, yet" I reply "We should see what happens first"

"I agree" she said "if we act like nothing happened it'll really confuse them which could be quite funny, though I do need to tell Greg"

"Greg? Why?" I asked

"Because he already knows I liked you and there's no way I can hide this from him. He knows me too well" She replied "don't worry though, he won't tell anyone else I promise"

"Okay" I said "but eventually we'll tell them all"

We spent the remainder of out time talking about me and Lindsey whilst we ate. After paying we got into the car and made it to work in time for our shift.


	8. Chapter 8

-1**DISCLAIMER IS THE SAME AS CHAPTER 1**

A/N: this is the last up-date for today. I'm going to take my computer to work so I may get some more typed up which I can then post here very soon. Hope you are enjoying it, please review. Sara's past is soon going to come back in a few chapters time so be prepared!

A/N2: I'm really sorry about the sort of cliff hanger ending I'm leaving you with.

Chapter 8

SPOV

I gave Catherine a quick kiss before entering work. We both knew that the guys would be wondering what went on last night but we both entered the break room as if nothing had happened.

"Hey Guys" I say cheerfully "How's your heads doing?"

"Not too bad" says Greg handing me two cups of coffee "can we talk?"

"Later" I reply giving him a 'not now' look. Nick and Warrick looked between me and Catherine as I handed her one of the cups but they didn't say anything. I smiled at them knowing what they were thinking. Before anything was said grissom walked in.

"Right, there are no new cases as of yet so its paperwork time. If anything comes up I'll let you know" he says before walking back out of the room.

"Well, I'll see you all later" I say as I headed out towards 'my lab' as it's been christened to make a start on my mountain of paperwork I knew I had.

CPOV

I watched Sara leave, followed by Greg and I turned to see nick and Warrick looking at me. Before they could ask me anything I excused myself by saying I needed to talk to Brass.

"Hey Jim" I say catching him in his office "you got a minute?"

"Sure" he replies "What's up?"

"Nothing's wrong" I reassured him "But I have got a solution to your problem pertaining next weeks rivalry"

"Huh?" he says confused

"I've found you a pitcher for our game next week" I say clarifying it for him.

"You have!" he says lighting up. We both remember our last game where we got thrashed thanks to Grissom's inept attempts at pitching.

"Yeah" I state "Sara!"

"She can pitch?" he questions

"Damn straight" I reply " she took her college team to the state championships and won! She's not to shabby with a bat either"

"Perfect" he says "Will she play though?"

"Already asked her and she perfectly willing to throw again" I answered

"Excellent, I'll put her name down. I assume you are still playing." he asks

"Hell yeah, I can't wait to see ecklie's face when we show him our secret weapon. He'll assume Grissom is pitching again. I suggest we keep this quiet until the match." I said

"What a great idea." he said "I'll go mention to Gill that he can get out of pitching but not get out of playing and you go tell sara out plan."

"Cool, see you later" I said walking out of his office.

SPOV

I knew that Greg was going to come after me so I sat down and waited for him to arrive. He turned up a few minutes later and I knew that he had hundreds of questions for me so I cut him off before he could start on them.

"Greg, what I'm about to tell you is secret and upon pain of death you can't tell anyone" I stated. He nodded in confirmation and sat down after closing the door.

"I know everyone is wondering about what I said last night but for now I'm pretending it didn't happen. When I got home last night Catherine was already there. We talked and realised that we shared the same feelings. We even had our first kiss last night and no I'm not going into details about that. We went on our first date tonight and everything is fine between us. You've hot to promise me you won't tell anyone as we just want to see how things go first." I said at length.

"I promise, Sara" Greg replied "and I'm really happy for the two of you"

He gave me a hug before leaving me to my paperwork. A short while later I hear a knock on the door and its Catherine. She explained to me about her conversation with Brass and I agreed with her about wanting to see the shock on Ecklie's face. Deciding I needed a coffee we both went to the break room finding the guys had the same line of thought. We all sat talking about the lack of cases when Grissom walked in. hoping we finally had work to do we all stopped talking. When I saw who had walked in behind him I could feel the blood draining from my face.

"Sara, this is…"

"Agent Bruller" I interjected

"…of the FBI" he says confused that I knew who it was "He would like a word with you."

A/N: Again I'm really sorry about this cliff hanger but I really must get some sleep before my shift tonight. I promise to have the next chapters up soon. Please don't hate me and please review. All thoughts are welcome!


	9. Chapter 9

-1**DISCLAIMER STILL HASN'T CHANGED FROM CHAPTER 1.**

A/N: well here is the next chapter. Sorry the updates aren't quicker but I'm struggling to find time. Thanks for all the great reviews they have really kept me going. Hopefully this chapter will answer some of the questions for you. It's only a short one but there is plenty more to come I promise.

Chapter 9

SPOV

Catherine looked at me and I'm sure she noticed my shocked appearance because she told me to use her office. Agent Bruller and I walked there in silence and we sat on opposite sides of the table. I opted for Catherine's comfy chair as I knew this couldn't be pleasant.

"I'm really sorry" he started "I've got some bad news." I just nodded for him to continue.

"Your mother has recently broken out of jail and is on the run. We are still trying to piece all the evidence together to find out how she did it but I thought that you needed to be warned in case she came after you. We both know what she is capable of and I don't want you to get hurt. We want to put you in protective custody until we find her"

"No!" I said "I'm not running! I'm not a little girl anymore I won't let her stop me from doing my job. I understand your concerns but I'm not leaving everything I've worked for here."

"It's ultimately your choice, we can't force you to go into hiding" he said "but I want you to be careful. We don't know where she is or what she wants so please watch your back."

"I will" I reply

"OK, well I best be going, sorry it was such a short visit but we've got mountains of evidence to pile through ASAP." he then gets up and leaves.

I stay right where I am. I'm too shocked to move. My mind is racing, as is my pulse. Despite what I had just said I was scared to death of my mother being on the run and I found myself having flashbacks to my dreadful past. I don't know how much time had past but I was suddenly pulled from my thoughts by someone touching my hand. Without realising it I jerked my hand away. When I looked up and saw the hurt in her eyes I had to say something.

"I'm sorry, Cat" I said "I didn't realise it was you. I was lost in my thoughts."

"That's ok" she said smiling slightly "you ok?"

"No" I said and unexpectedly, even to me, I burst into tears.

She just held me in her arms until my sobbing stopped.

"Come on" she says "I'm taking you home. You are not fit to work like this." I just nodded in agreement.

I could see the guys staring as we walked out but I just kept my head down. When Gill went to say something Catherine just shook her head at him and he nodded in understanding that we were both leaving work early.


	10. Chapter 10

-1**DISCLAIMER IS THE SAME AS CHAPTER 1.**

A/N: this chapter has a slight spoiler for the episode 'nesting dolls'.

A/N2:this is the last update today but hopefully I'll be back with more tomorrow. Please keep the reviews coming. They are like coffee to me when I need to stay awake and type more chapters for you.

Chapter 10

CPOV

I admit that I was shocked to see Sara like this, I mean I don't think I've seen her so venerable. I knew something was wrong when she had gone pale just at the sight of the agent but for her to burst into tears was heartbreaking. I could see all of this had taken a lot out of her because she was dozing in the car as I took her home.

I helped her into her flat when we got there and after she had taken her medication I tucked her into bed. As I turned to leave she grabbed my hand.

"Cat, don't go, please" she begged before bursting into tears again.

I crawled onto the other side of the bed and pulled her into my arms.

"Shush" I say comforting her "I'm not going anywhere, just let it all out."

Her sobs quietened and I thought she had fallen asleep until I heard her start talking.

"I guess you want to know what's going on" she said

"only if you want to talk about it" I replied hoping that she would but not wanting to push her.

"This is really hard for me" she says "it's about what I couldn't tell you earlier. It's about my past"

I just held her closely to me hoping she would use my strength to help her talk. With a big sigh she told me everything.

"it's funny the things you remember. I can remember the smell of iron in the air, the blood spatter on the walls, even the young cop puking up his guts. The violent end to the brutal past. It all started when I was 3, the beatings, the yelling, the trips to the hospital, ending on the wrong side of both my father and my mothers temper. I thought this was normal everyday behaviour. When I was 7 it got worse, my father started raping me. It was one day when he came after me that the dreadful day happened. I was crouched in the corner of my room when my mother stabbed my father to death. I thought she was going to come after me next but she just slapped me until I blacked out. Next thing I know the police are there and I'm going back to the hospital. It's there I first met agent Bruller, he told me they'd got my mother and I was needed to testify at her trial, which I did. And now…"

This is where she trailed off in her speech and cried again. Despite the tears running down my own face at her brutal upbringing I held her tightly.

"And now he's back" she continued "he told me that my mother has broken out of jail and is on the run and I'm so scared that she is coming for me"

"I'm not going to let anything happen to you" I said "but I need to tell Gill, he's your supervisor and this is too important to leave him out of the loop."

"He already knows some of my past. He forced me to tell him and I blew up at you and ecklie on the mail order bride case we were working on" she stated

I nodded in recognition as I realised why he had defended her so much to Ecklie that day. We stay cuddled together until I realised that she had fallen asleep. Knowing that I needed to speak to Gill I slipped out of her embrace and left the room whilst dialling his number on my phone.

"Grissom" he answered

"Gill, it's Catherine" I said

"Catherine, what's going on, what's wrong with Sara?"

"How much do you know about Sara's past?" I asked wanting to know how much detail I was going to have to give him.

"I can't tell you Catherine, that's Sara's choice" he replied

"Sara's told me everything. I just wondered what you knew so as what further information I needed to give you" I say honesty

"I know there was some abuse in her childhood and that her mother killed her father in front of her but that's it" he replied.

"Some abuse?!" I said "Gill she was seriously beaten by both her mother and her father, not to mentioned raped by him. It's more serious than she told you. But that's not all of it anymore" I sighed before continuing.

"Agent Bruller was the one assigned to her case. He has come back to talk to her as it seems that her mother has broken out of jail and is missing." I informed him.

"What?!" Gill shouted.

"Gill, calm down. I'm only informing you as you need to know but Sara doesn't want or need the whole lab to know about this. She's sleeping at the moment and right now all she needs is our support. I'll see you tomorrow night." with that I hung up the phone and went back to Sara.

I lay next to her and she finds her way back into my arms despite being asleep. I let myself drift off as well hoping things weren't going to take a turn for the worse.


	11. Chapter 11

-1**DISCLAIMER IS THE SAME AS CHAPTER 1.**

A/N: Here is the next chapter and it's a fairly long one if I so say so myself. Hope you all enjoy, please review.

A/N2: chimp1984 here's another instalment of them playing baseball so I hope you enjoy the visualisations you'll have of them in their uniforms.

A/N3: I don't really know any of the members of the dayshift so I've made up Paul and Mike for my own uses.

A/N4: Sorry for the evil cliff hanger but the way the story is going I think there'll be a few more of them to come. I'll get the next chapter up ASAP.

Chapter 11

SPOV  
The next morning I awoke in Catherine's arms. I smiled as I snuggled in further. She tightened her grip on me and I realised she was awake.

"Hey" I said smiling at her.

"Hey" she said back "how you feeling?"

"Better" I replied "Thanks for listening to me and for staying"

"I'm just glad you are feeling better" she says placing a soft kiss on my head. I turned my head up and caught her lips in a soft yet passionate kiss.

"Breakfast?" I asked "or rather tea?" I said as I noticed the time. I heard her stomach growling in response and had to laugh.

"Do you mind if I have a quick shower?" she asks

"Sure" I replied "spare towels are in the cupboard"

She made her way into the bathroom whilst I went into the kitchen to make something to eat. I decided to cook something as it would help take my mind off a naked Catherine in the shower. A short while later she joined me in the kitchen and we ate together whilst chatting about the up and coming match. I quickly showered before we went to work stopping briefly at hers so she could change her clothes. Walking into work we met Grissom who just said if there was anything I needed I could always come and talk to him.

Over the next week I buried myself in work and spent most of my evenings with Catherine. The day before the match I went with Catherine to pick p Lindsey from school as she was back from her trip and we spent the evening listening to all her stories. I couldn't help laughing over some of the things she got up to whilst camping.

The day of the game arrived and I wondered what to wear. Looking in the bottom drawer of my dresser I came across my old shirt that we got when we won state and decided that if I was going to play baseball I might as well look the part to. I found the rest of my uniform at the bottom of a box in my wardrobe along with my bat, glove and cap. I was surprised to find that my kit still fitted me but was pleased with the results as I looked in the mirror. I had to laugh when I caught sight of my name above the college logo '3 sec sidle', well that was going to be a talking point amongst those that didn't already know. Pulling my hair, I secured it before putting on my cap. I then pulled on a light jacket before grabbing my belongings and went to pick up Catherine and Lindsey. Nancy, Catherine's sister, was coming to so that she could look after Lindsey whilst we were playing. The 4 of us made our way to the local pitches where we were playing and met up with the guys.

"Hey guys" I said smiling

"Great, our star pitcher is here" states Brass.

I smiled and took off my jacket. Only Brass and Catherine weren't surprised to find out about winning state and I couldn't wait to see Ecklie's face.

It didn't take long for everyone to arrive and I was ecstatic to see Ecklie's face pale when he saw my top and heard Brass mention I was pitching. I'm sure I heard him swear as he walked away.

After a toss of the coin we were first to bat. Brass stepped up to the plate and I watched as the game got underway. I couldn't help notice that their pitcher, despite being able to throw straight, had only one style of pitch. He placed the ball in the same place every time which makes it easier to hit. By the time I was up to bat we had all the bases loaded with 1 out to go. I watched as he threw the ball and I smacked it right out of the park for a home run. I got claps on the back as I rounded home plate. 4-0 up already, I couldn't help smiling at the fact that they had no idea what was in store with my pitching. Grissom was next up to bat and was quickly struck out.

As our team took the field I walked up to the pitcher's mound and watched Ecklie nervously swinging his bat in preparation. I started out with a pitch straight down the middle which he swung at and missed. Deciding to throw some variety into the mix I followed this up with a curve ball and ended with a fast ball. Despite not having thrown for some years I knew that this was still virtually un-hittable. Seeing his face fall as he realised I had struck him out was the best feeling I'd had for a while and I was glad that I was playing again. By the end of the game we won 12-0 and I was on my way to having one of the best days of my life.

In the pub afterwards we were all celebrating our victory, even the day shift were there, when I realised how much like college this actually was. Brass had just announced that it was time for the beer race. Apparently 3 people are chosen from each team to compete in downing a pint of beer. These players are chosen by the opposition. Who ever wins gains an extra days holiday for the whole shift. Ecklie got up and said that he want me, Catherine and Grissom to be out chosen members. Greg started to laugh and I sent him a 'shut up' glare.

"Don't say another word" I whispered "unless you don't want that extra holiday"

He shut his mouth instantly.

Wanting to see the look on his face when I beat him again I told Brass to pick Ecklie and 2 of the best pint drinkers on the team. He looked at me strangely but as he saw Catherine and the guys agreeing with me he did what I asked.

"Ok" says Brass "we chose Ecklie, Mike and Paul"

You could tell that they were stunned to hear that their best drinkers were chosen but they got up anyways. I turned to Nancy and gave her my car keys and said that she would probably need to drive us home later.

"Sara" said Lindsey "what does 3sec sidle mean?"

"You're about to find out" I replied winking.

The 6 of us stood in a line with our pints and waited for Brass to count us down.

"3...2...1...go!" he shouted.

The shouting of encouragement turned to cheers of congratulations as I finished my pint in 3 seconds flat. Mike and Paul finished next followed surprisingly by Catherine. Ecklie then finished followed lastly by Grissom. I then turned and shook a very confused Ecklie's hand before wishing him more luck next time. I then rejoined my team.

"Sara, that was so cool" shouted Lindsey "Can you teach me how to do that?"

"Maybe when you are older" I replied "much older"

She sat down pouting as Catherine, Nancy and I cracked up at the sight of her. She soon got over it though and was happily joining in everyone's conversations.

CPOV

A few hours later Nancy dropped us off at home before taking Sara back to hers. As she didn't live far from Sara's she gave her back her keys and walked home from there. Later that evening after I had put Lindsey to bed the phone rang.

"Hello" I answered

"Hey baby" came the reply. I smiled when I recognised Sara's voice.

"Hey, how you doing?" I asked

"I'm great. Thanks for making me play today" she said "I never realised how much I missed the game until today"

"I'm glad you enjoyed yourself" I said

We spent ages talking about everything and nothing when I heard a crash coming from her end.

"What was that?" I asked

"I don't know" she said "Hold on whilst I check it out"

I heard a muffled cry and a thud from her end.

"Sara…Sara, what's going on?" I shout worriedly.

"Hello Sara" I heard come from the other end of the phone "did you miss me? Well guess what………………..Mummy's home!"


	12. Chapter 12

-1**DISCLAIMER IS THE SAME AS CHAPTER 1.**

A/N: Here is the next chapter, hope you enjoy it. Please keep the reviews coming

Chapter 12

CPOV

The phone then went dead. I was scared at what I had just heard. I couldn't make sense of what had happened. I tried ringing her back but the phone just rang out. I then rang Grissom and told him what had I'd heard. He agreed to ring Brass and we would all make our way to Sara's apartment. I woke Lindsey up and dropped her at Nancy's before heading round to Sara's. I get there the same time as the guys and we cautiously made our way to her apartment. We enter with guns drawn to find it a huge mess. It's quite obvious that no-one is there and I start to freak out. I tried ringing her mobile only to find it on her bed. I run outside as I can't bear to see the mess inside whilst Grissom rings the rest of the team to come and process the place.

They all get here in record time and Nick, Warrick and Grissom get to work. Greg comes over to me and pulls me into his arms. I firstly wondered at his actions but then I remembered that he was the only one to know about me and Sara so I let him comfort me. Brass comes over and asks me questions about what I knew. I told him what I had heard over the phone. Seeing that I couldn't be of anymore help and knowing that there was enough people her to process the apartment he told me to go and check on Lindsey so that I could pull myself together.

I thanked him and went to Nancy's house.

Lindsey was still up when I got there and she threw her arms around me and asked what was wrong. I just told her that Sara was missing and we were working towards finding her. She gave me a knowing look before speaking again.

"You love her don't you?" she asked.

"We all do" I replied without realising the true meaning of her question.

"No, I mean you really love her!" she emphasised "not that I mind, I think she's really cool"

"Yes Lindsey, I do love her" I said and burst out crying.

"Don't worry mom" she said pulling me into a hug "you'll find her. I know you will"

I just stayed hugging her for a while before telling her that I was going to go to the lab to see what I could do to find her.

The guys were back by the time I got to the lab and we started processing the evidence.

"I wonder what these tablets are?" said nick holding up a packet of orange tablet.

"That's Sara's epilepsy medication" I stated as I saw what he was holding

"Sara's got epilepsy?" he queried

"Since she was little" I answered.

"I didn't know that" he replied "Did you Warrick?" he asked turning towards the other guy?

"No, but then we don't know much about Sara do we?" Warrick replied.

I could see that they wondered how I knew this information but I just turned away and we all got back down to work.

I found some hairs with DNA still attached to them and rushed them straight to DNA. I was a bit surprised to see Greg there as he was now a CSI but I realised that he was doing this for Sara so I handed over the evidence and walked out. Later he found me in the break room and handed over the results. I wasn't surprised to see that it had come back as Sara's mothers hair. I knew that this confused Greg but he didn't know about her past and I wasn't going to explain it to him. I left him there whilst I went to find Grissom.

I was telling him the results when Warrick came in with a key ring tag belonging to a car rental company.

Brass followed him in and after Warrick left I explained everything to Brass. I knew that Sara didn't want everyone to know about her past but it was all relevant to the case and he needed to know. Brass got straight on the phone to the car rental company and found that a car had been rented in Sara's name. after getting all the details about the car he then sent out an APB. We knew that every cop in the city would be on the look out for the car and all we could do for now is wait.


	13. Chapter 13

-1**DISCLAIMER IS THE SAME AS CHAPTER 1.**

A/N: this chapter contains MATURE CONTENT based around torture so if you are offended by this please don't read. This is what happens to Sara next.

Chapter 13

SPOV  
I woke with a banging headache. When I tried to move I found my arms and legs were tied.

"Morning"

My eyes shot open at the sound of a voice, I knew exactly who it was.

"You must have hit your head pretty hard. You've been out of it for 12 hours" she said.

Groaning to myself I did a quick calculation in my head. I realised I had missed 2 doses of my medication and I knew that no matter what happened I needed to stay calm. All I needed would be to have a seizure. I knew the severe punishments I'd got in the past because of my illness. She always thought that I was faking it and I got a serious beating more than once before because of this.

"What do you want" I ask carefully

"What?!" she asked "Can't a mother want to spend some time with her daughter?"

She gave me a look that terrified me to the core. She had the same glint in her eyes that she'd had when she murdered my father.

I could feel my body start to tense up and I was willing myself to stay calm. Closing my eyes I concentrated on my breathing.

"Look at me when I'm talking to you" she shouted.

That was when the beating started. She aimed a few blows at my head but concentrated mainly on my stomach, chest, abdomen and sides. I swear I heard something crack at one point shortly followed by a sharp pain in my chest.

I was finding it harder to breathe but the blows just kept on coming. Suddenly it all stopped and I heard her leave the room. It wasn't long before she came back carrying a hot pan. I recognised the smell immediately and braced myself for a different type of pain.

As the hot oil hit my stomach I couldn't help screaming out in agony. And that was when the seizures started.

As true as most epileptics I don't actually remember having a seizure but I could tell that I must have had them as the abuse got worse after each one.

By now every part of my body was aching including my arms and legs from pulling on the restraints.

Different types of tortures were reigned on my body over the next few hours and by now I couldn't even scream anymore. I was floating in and out of consciousness and I couldn't help thinking when all this was going to end.

The punishment stopped for a while and I happily sank into oblivion.

A few hours later I woke to find her standing over me with a knife. I found it ironic that it was identical to the knife that she used to kill my father.

"It's time to make you bleed a bit" she said before proceeding to cut deep gashes up my arms and legs.

Al I could think about was Catherine. I knew by now that there was little hope of me ever seeing her again. I knew my mother was going to kill me. I decided to get this over with and provoked my mother one last time. I wanted to go on my terms not hers.

"You know they'll find you" I said "it's only a matter of time before the evidence will catch up with you and you'll be back in jail before you can say 'I'm a crazy psychopathic murderer'"

As I watched her stand over me with the knife drawn I saw a snarl on her face and waited for the strike to come.

"Get it over with bitch" I shouted as she drew the knife further over her head.

I heard a large bang in the background and vaguely registered the door having opened before she thrust the knife into my stomach.


	14. Chapter 14

-1**DISCLAIMER IS THE SAME AS CHAPTER 1.**

A/N: Here is the next chapter for you all to enjoy. Sorry about the cliff hanger at the end of the last chapter but I was typing in work and I had other things to do. Anyways I'm not working today so hopefully I'll get some more chapters up for you all. Please keep the reviews coming I really appreciate them.

A/N2: again I am not fully educated in the medical profession so if I've got a few things wrong I'm sorry.

A/N3: Sorry it's a short chapter but I'll make up for it somehow?….I know I'll write the next one for you now!

Chapter 14

CPOV

We were all gathered in the break room when Brass's phone went off. After a short, muffled conversation he turns to us and tells us that the car has been sighted at an abandoned warehouse downtown. We all rushed outside and jumped into our cars and made our way to the site. When we arrived we noticed that quite a few members of the LVPD were already there. Guns drawn we enter the building and slowly secure the site. With only the basement left to check, Brass, Warrick and I were the first to reach the door. Brass kicked the door down just in time to see Sara being stabbed. We immediately opened fire and her mother slumped to the ground dead.

It was then I realised that Sara had gone into a 'grand-mal' seizure and was violently shaking on the bed. I ran over to her, ignoring the need to preserve the evidence, screaming for the paramedics to be brought in. I knew I couldn't stop the seizure so I tried to stem the bleeding instead. I looked in horror at all her injuries. Having never witnessed a seizure before I couldn't help being fearful at the severity of it. It took a few minutes for the paramedics to arrive and she hadn't stopped seizing the whole time.

They quickly administered some epistatus (a drug to help pull someone out of a seizure) and after a few minutes they were able to get the seizure under control. They then tended to her other wounds. I knew that she had lost a lot of blood and they immediately set up an IV infusion of Saline to try and keep her blood volume up.

Sara never regained consciousness the whole time and I was absolutely petrified that we were too late.

Sara was rushed to hospital in the ambulance and whisked off to surgery straight away whilst all I could do was sit and wait for the others to arrive. We had left the scene for the dayshift to gather evidence though we knew that it wasn't really needed so I was soon joined by the rest of the graveyard shift.

All we could do now was sit and watch the time pass by slowly as no news came.


	15. Chapter 15

-1**DISCLAIMER IS THE SAME AS CHAPTER 1.**

A/N: As promised here is the next chapter. Again I'm not a medical practitioner so if I've got anything wrong I'm sorry.

Chapter 15

SPOV

"Sara-bear………..Sara-bear?"

I look up and I'm standing in this beautiful garden. I turned towards the voice that I had heard. It was my grandfather. He had died when I was 4 and I had missed him so much.

"Grandpa" I cried running into his arms. I stood there in his arms and let all the tears flow out of my body.

"Does this mean I'm dead?" I ask

"Technically?….yes" he replied "But not for long. You have to go back Sara, you have to live"

"I don't know if I can" I say "I don't know how top"

"You'll figure it out" he said "You have people who love you and will support you. It's not your time to die. There are many victims out there that need your help"

He gives me a kiss on my head as he hugs me again. As he steps away he starts fading away from me

"I'll always be watching you" he says before disappearing completely.

Everything then fades to black.

CPOV

We all jump up as we noticed the doctor walking our way.

"Who's the family of Sara Sidle?" he asks

"She doesn't have any" I reply "we're the closet she's got"

The doctor looks at all of us before deciding whether to talk to us.

"Sara has extensive injuries internally and externally. The stab wound perforated her spleen which thankfully we've managed to repair. She has 3 broken ribs, 1 dislocated shoulder, a broken leg, many deep lacerations that required numerous stitches and 1st degree burns over 5 of her body. She arrested on the operating table but was brought back to life with minimal effort needed" he said

I could feel myself go physically sick at the list of her injuries.

"All these wounds are treatable" he continued "but we don't know what damage has been done to her brain from the prolonged seizure and the mental torture she has been through. Only time will tell. As the moment she is in a drug-induced coma to try and stabilised her body before we attempt to wake her up. You can go in and see her 1 at a time for 10 minutes only but then you will have to go. I'm afraid only family can stay around the clock. We have limited visiting hours here in the ICU."

He was about to walk off when I went after him and asked to speak to him privately. I explained that Sara and I were involved in a relationship and as she had no family I asked to take their place and stay with her outside of visiting hours. He could see the pleading on my face and agreed to let the staff know about the situation and allowed me to stay with her constantly. I thanked him before I rejoined the group.

I watched them all go in 1 by 1 and come back out crestfallen. I told them all to go home before I went in stating that I was ok to get home without them. I didn't want to explain to them that I wasn't going home. I wasn't up for that conversation right now. Most of them left but Greg remained.

"You're not leaving are you?" he asked

"No, I'm not" I replied "I've told the doctor about me and Sara and they've agreed to let me stay with her. I just can't leave her alone here. I know that she hates hospitals so I want to be here when they try to wake her up."

He nodded his head in understanding.

"Try and get some sleep" he said pulling me into a hug before leaving the hospital.

I made my way to Sara's room and I couldn't help but notice how small and frail she looked, hooked up to all the machines. I sat on the chair and took her hand in mine.

Then I let the tears fall. I'd managed to be strong for hours but now I just let them all out.


	16. Chapter 16

-1**DISCLAIMER IS THE SAME AS ALWAYS.**

A/N: here is the next chapter. I'm afraid it could be a while before my next up-date. Truth be told I already had these first 16 chapters written so all I needed to do was type them up. I'm experiencing a little writers block at the moment as my muse seems to have abandoned me. Hopefully though she will return soon. I'd really like to get this finished as I have other story ideas floating around my head.

A/N2: again no medical knowledge so I apologise for any mistakes.

A/N3: I don't think I have left a cliff-hanger ending but I apologise if you think I have.

Chapter 16

CPOV  
I must have fallen asleep or something as next thing I know that nurse is gently waking me. She said that the doctor had ordered the stop of the drug-induced coma and now we would wait for Sara to wake up.

A few hours later I felt her grip my hand and saw her eyes open. I tried talking to her but she just stared at the wall. I pushed the button for the nurse and she paged the doctor.

He examined Sara and said that she was suffering from Post traumatic Stress Disorder (known as PTSD from now onwards). He encouraged me to keep talking to her and hopefully we could pull her out of her current state. He said that studies had shown that patients with PTSD seemed to be in a catatonic state yet they were actually very aware of their surroundings. They heard and felt everything but were trapped inside their minds searching for a way out. By talking to her I would hopefully be able to help her find that way. It wasn't long before I realised how much she was actually aware of.

All I said was that I needed to leave the room for a few minutes to make some phone calls. All of a sudden her heart rate jumped from 65 to 120 and her breathing became laboured. I saw her eyes roll back before she had a seizure. The nurse came bounding into the room and gave her a sedative that would knock her out for a few hours. I took advantage of this to make all the phone calls I needed to make as I was damn sure that I wouldn't leave that room again if I could help it. I knew she was scared of me leaving her and that is what triggered her seizure.

I rang Nancy and explained the situation. She agreed to bring me some spare clothes in and to look after Lindsey for me. She said she would bring Lindsey by in the evening to see me.

Next I rang Gill and asked him for time off work. I explained to him that I was staying with Sara 24/7. He queried why I was allowed this and I just said that when I tried to leave sara had taken a turn for the worse so the doctors decided that it would be best for me to stay. I knew that this wasn't entirely accurate but I couldn't tell him the whole truth, not yet anyways. He agreed to give me the time off and I made my way back to Sara's room.

It wasn't long before nancy came with my spare clothes and I went into the bathroom to change. Nancy and I spoke for a short while about my feelings and my relationship with sara. She was really understanding about the whole thing and pulled me into a reassuring hug before leaving, promising to bring Lindsey by later.

During visiting hours all the guys popped in to see how things were going and spent the time talking to Sara despite her being unconscious.

It was about lunchtime when Sara awoke again still in her catatonic state. Grabbing her hand I started telling her stories of all the fun things that Lindsey had done over the years. It was a topic that I could talk about for hours and I did just that. I knew how much Sara cared for Lindsey so I thought it could be beneficial to her progress.

Lindsey came by during evening visiting hours just as promised and spent time telling sara what she had done at school that day. The guys also popped back during the evening.

This same routine went of for 3 days.

SPOV

I could hear everyone, I remember freaking out when Catherine was going to leave and then things got blurry for a while. I listened to Catherine as she spoke about Lindsey and I listened to the guys whenever they visited. I wanted so desperately to talk back to them but no matter how hard I tried I couldn't find my way out. Then it clicked. I needed to stop trying so hard and allow Catherine's voice to pull me out. I concentrated solely on her voice and let her pull me through the mist of my thoughts. I forgot everything else that was going on in my head and felt the love we had for each other surrounding me.

I found that I could move my hand. I gave her hand a squeeze and she stopped talking in surprise.

"Sara…Sara can you hear me?" she asked "Come back to me baby. If you can hear me squeeze my hand again"

Who was I to deny her anything so I obediently squeezed her hand again.

I then noticed a bright light ahead and things started to come into focus. I could see Catherine looking down at me with tears falling down her face.

"Cat" I managed to say.

With that she pulled me into a gentle hug as not to injure me further. I could see her reach for something and next thing I know there are nurses and doctors piling into my room. I felt myself being tossed and turned but I kept a firm grip on Catherine's hand the whole time. The doctor asked me how much I remembered. As I started to think about it my pulse jumped and catherine told the doctor to stop questioning me. She just stroked my hair and told me to calm down, that I didn't need to think about this just yet. Relaxing into her touch my heart rate soon slowed.

"I'm tired" I say looking at her.

"Get some sleep" she says "I'm going to let the others know that you're ok. This means I've got to leave the room, will you be ok for 5 minutes. I'll be straight back I promise"

"Ok" I say knowing that I could cope with this.

She rushes out of the room and I wait for her to return.

CPOV

"Gill, it's Catherine" I say as he answers the phone "Sara's awake. I can't stay on long as I must get back but I'm ringing to say that everything is going to be ok"

Hanging up the phone I then make a similar call to nancy before going back to Sara.

When I go back into the room I see sara heave a sigh of relief before letting sleep overcome her.


	17. Chapter 17

-1**DISCLAIMER IS THE SAME AS CHAPTER 1.**

A/N: Sorry that the updates are not as fast as before but I'm now writing from scratch and its taking a while to get my brain going. Here is the next chapter for you. Hope you enjoy it. Please keep the reviews coming.

Chapter 17

CPOV

I sit there watching Sara sleep and I can't help thinking about how peaceful she looks. I know that it'll take a while for her to recover from this. Hell, she was still recovering from her childhood. I hoped that she wouldn't close herself off again but would let me help her through this. I take a break from watching her sleep to look out of the window. The sky is so clear tonight that you can see all the stars. They look so beautiful in all their glory. As I stand there staring I get an overwhelming sense of calm settling across me. Somehow I know that everything was going to be ok it would take time but I knew that we could make this work. I was startled from my star gazing by a cry from sara.

I look across to the bed and I see her fighting, obviously lost in a nightmare. I rush over to her and try to calm her down. I slowly run my fingers through her hair whilst whispering words of comfort. After a while she stops struggling and I see her eyes begin to open.

"It's ok baby," I said "you're ok now. It was just a nightmare"

She grabs me into a hug and cries on my shoulder. I just held her close in hopes that she would be comforted by my nearness.

"you ok?" I ask as she pulls away

"I think so" she replied "I get a lot of these nightmares but that one just seemed more real"

"You've been through a lot so I'm not surprise" I replied. She just nodded in response.

"I died didn't I" she asked.

I was shocked that she would know that because the doctor hadn't explained everything to her yet.

"briefly in the operating room you did" I answered "but how did you know?"

"My grandpa told me" she answered "he came to me in a dream and told me that I had to live again, that there were people that needed me to live"

I was moved by this. I'd heard about people having visits from loved ones when they were near death but this was more real to me.

"There's something else I need to tell you" she said "When I was taken by my mother all I could think about was never getting to see you again. That I would never get to tell you how I really felt"

She paused here as if to gather her thoughts.

"I know that this is sudden but for me it isn't. I've felt this way for a long time and I need to tell you this. I'm in love with you Cat, always have been, always will be." she said this and then looked away. Its seemed as if she was embarrassed by this.

"Sara, look at me" I said.

As she turned her head to look at me I continued.

"I love you to" I continued "when I thought that we would never find you it broke me in two. Even Lindsey could see how much I loved you, she even asked me outright."

"Lindsey knows?" she asked confused and also slightly scared.

"Yes she does" I replied "and she's delighted. She really likes you sara and she doesn't have any problems with the two of us. Neither does Nancy. The guys at the lab don't know though as I thought that it would be better coming from the both of us."

She didn't say anything in reply to this but just pulled me into a passionate kiss. I could feel all her passion and love come through in that kiss. It's true what they say about actions speaking louder than words.

We spent the next few hours talking about how we were going to continue this relationship and what to tell the guys. We were interrupted by the doctor. After examining Sara he told us that she could go home in a few days.

"Sara, I want you to come and stay with me" I said "you can't get to your flat with a broken leg"

She was about to protest when I cut her off.

"Please Sara, let me take care of you" I said

"Ok," she said giving in "but only because I love you and want to be with you"

I smiled at this and then insisted that she try to get some more sleep before the guys descended on us during visiting hours.

Now that sara was awake the doctors had decided that she could be transferred to a normal room so visitors could come more often.

Sara was still plagued by nightmares when she slept but I was able to calm her down without waking her.

When she awoke a few hours later she looked more refreshed that she had for a while.

SPOV

I was so happy that I had managed to tell Catherine that I loved her and even more overjoyed that she said the same back. I could tell that she really meant it and wasn't just saying it because she thought that it was what I wanted to hear. As I woke from my sleep I noticed her staring at me. It was a while before she realised that I was awake and she blushed as she'd been caught watching me as I slept. Before I could say anything we were interrupted by the guys dropping by. They all brought flowers and chocolates. They were so happy that I was awake. I'd never realised until now just how much they all cared about me. I was finally one of the family. We all sat around chatting about various cases that had come up since I'd been found and soon I was laughing at the ludicrous thoughts that some criminals had. I mean one guy actually thought he'd been cleaver when he tried to commit a robbery wrapped in Clingfilm to prevent leaving any DNA behind. The guys left after a while as they had to get back to work but it wasn't long before Lindsey arrived. She came and gave me a huge hug which I had to prevent a gasp of pain at and told me that I was never going to go away again. We sat around talking for a while and she fully agreed to Catherine's plan that I should come and stay at their house while I was recuperating.

The next few days were bearable, seeing as I was still in hospital and I hate hospitals. Catherine only left me for short times, such as making phone calls, as she knew that I hated being on my own.

As they day to leave arrived I was over the moon. Catherine and Lindsey came and picked me up and drove me to their house. I had a walking cast on my leg as I wouldn't be able to use crutches with my broken ribs but I still clung onto catherine for support. As I entered the house I couldn't help feeling at home.


	18. Chapter 18

-1**DISCLAIMER IS THE SAME AS CHAPTER 1.**

A/N: here is the next chapter. I only have a few more chapters planned before this story is finished so I'll write them as soon as I can. I hope you are enjoying the story.

Chapter 18

SPOV

The next few weeks I enjoyed spending the time with Catherine and Lindsey. Catherine was back at work so I looked after Lindsey so that Nancy could have a break. I spent the time getting to know the little blonde and I fell in love with her. She was so much like her mother that she didn't even realise it. She was perfectly happy with the relationship between her mother and me that I'd even heard her talking to her friends about me.

After a month I was finally allowed back to work. As I still had a cast on my leg and by rib still twinges on occasion I wasn't allowed into the field but I was happy just to potter around the lab, helping out here and there. I was surprise how happy I was despite what I had just been through and I could tell that the guys were wondering as well. I'd even heard rumours of a bet that was going on as to what could be the cause of my happiness. I must remember to ask catherine to try and find out for me.

I smiled as I thought about catherine. I knew that this was the real reason for my happiness. Never before had I become part of a family and her and Lindsey had accepted me with open arms. I loved catherine so much and I was going to tell her when she returned from the field that I wanted us to tell everyone what was going on between us.

CPOV

I'd been out in the field all night working on a double homicide with Nick and Warrick. I'd heard bits of the conversation between the two guys and it seemed to be based on Sara.

"What about Sara?" I asked them

"Um…well…nothing" replied Nick blushing.

"Come on, spill" I said giving them a stare that said they needed to tell me everything if they knew what was good for them.

"Well, there is a bet going round the lab as to what is the cause of Sara's happiness" Warrick said "Considering what has happened recently she is just far too chipper"

I smiled as I knew exactly the reasons why she was happy but I wasn't' going to tell them.

"You know!" exclaimed Nick "You've got the same smirk as Greg had when we asked him but he isn't saying anything"

"Well neither am I." I replied "if you want to know then you are just going to have to ask sara yourself, but don't guarantee on getting an answer."

"I'm guessing she's got a new man in her life" said Nick "though where she's had the time is beyond me."

"No way man, I think she's come into some money or something and is going to use it to get rid of Ecklie." said Warrick. I couldn't help chuckling at the idea but I kept my mouth shut when they looked to me for answers.

With that I walked to the car placing the evidence in the back. The two guys followed and soon we were on our way back to the lab. Leaving the guys to sort out the evidence I went searching for sara.

I found her waiting for some coffee to brew in the break room. I smiled at her as I entered whilst making sure no-one was around. I gave her a quick kiss as there wasn't anyone to see and sat on the couch.

"You'll never guess what I've just heard" I said "I've just had a very interesting conversation about you."

"Anything to do with a certain bet that I've been hearing about?" she asked

"well, yes, to be honest" I replied "seems like you have been too happy since your ordeal and people are wanting to know why"

"Well I know why and it's got everything to do with you" she says

"I think Greg knows to as he is refusing to give out any answers" I say "Nick thinks it's a new man in your life, I don't think he realises how close to the truth he is, and Warrick thinks you've come into some money and therefore planning to get rid of Ecklie"

"I like that idea" she says laughing "It's a shame that it isn't true but I wouldn't give you up for all the money in the world."

"I love you" I state simply and honestly.

"I love you too" she says. I pull her down onto the couch beside me and proceed to kiss her passionately, forgetting we were in work.

We were interrupted by a cough sounding from the doorway.


	19. Chapter 19

-1**DISCLAIMER IS THE SAME AS CHAPTER 1.**

A/N: wow, I'm on a roll, I can't believe how much I've written today. It seems as if my muse has returned, good for her as I was about to apply for a new one. I know I left a cliff hanger at the end of the last chapter but I needed to write the two chapters separately. Hope you are enjoying the story. Please review so I know that I'm on track with where the story is going.

Chapter 19

SPOV

We break apart to find a very amused Greg at the door.

"If you don't want everyone to find out I suggest you don't do that in plain sight" Greg said stepping into the room. "it's a good job I know or else you'd be doing CPR to bring me back to life right now, that was so hot"

I reach over and give him a quick slap for being so cheeky but he knows he got away with it as I couldn't keep the grin off my face.

Not too long later we were joined by the rest of the team. As I caught the glance coming my way I quickly excused myself before they could ask any questions. I needed to sort out how I was going to talk to Catherine before I told them.

I entered the locker room and sat down thinking. She must have known I needed to talk because catherine walked in a few minutes later.

"Cat" I started "I can't keep this up any longer"

Catherine looked at me shocked and a little upset.  
"I don't mean us" I quickly interjected "I mean not telling the guys"

She looked relieved at this

"Ok, so what you want to do about it?" she asked

"I think that we should go back in there and tell them, I love you so much I don't want to constantly be looking over my shoulder before kissing you."

I kissed her with all the passion I could muster at this point not even bothering to check if someone caught us. I then grabbed her by the hand and we walked back to the break room. Everyone barring Grissom was there so I stayed whilst Catherine hunted him down. When they both arrived I suddenly got a little nervous.

"Well, you are probably wondering what this is about" started Catherine. No one said anything but just nodded her head.

"Well, truth be told I have found out about your little bet" I said "and from what I've heard none of you are going to be winning that bet."

I couldn't help but tease them all. I mean with the seriousness of what we were about to tell them I think that I should enjoy watching them squirm first.

"Truth is there is a new person in my life but it isn't a man" I stated.

As I got a lot of confused looks from the guys, except Greg who grinned, I started to lose my nerve a little. I mean how would they all take the fact that me and catherine were dating. Catherine must have sensed my nervousness as she took up where I had left off.

"What we really wanted to say is Sara and I are dating" she said "in fact, we love each other very much"

She looked at me as she said this and I could see the love in her eyes. I just smiled in return. The guys looked from catherine to me and decided that we weren't playing a joke but did in fact love each other. They all came up one at a time and congratulated us. Even Grissom who I thought might have had a problem with this.

"I know" says Warrick "Lets all go out after shift to celebrate, there's a new bar that opened round the corner that does Karaoke"

"Cool" I said "it sounds like fun, I'm in"

Everyone said that they would be there including Grissom so we all got back to work for the remaining few hours of the shift. At some point catherine managed to speak to Brass and tell him everything and he stated that he would love to join us,

After work had finished we all met in the lobby before making our way to the club. As it was only round the corner we walked so that we could have a drink and not worry about driving.


	20. Chapter 20

-1**DISCLAIMER IS THE SAME AS CHAPTER 1.**

A/N: Here is the next chapter. I was in the pub last night and I always sing this song on Karaoke. I thought it would fit perfectly into the story so that's why I've included it. The words belong to Sarah McLachlan's 'Angel'.

A/N2: There are only 2 more chapters to go after this one and I'm not sure how long it'll take to write them. Hopefully they'll be up soon.

Chapter 20

CPOV

We all get to the bar to find it still quite busy despite the time of day. Sara and I went to find a table big enough for us whilst the guys went to the bar. When they returned they raised their drinks in congratulations to us and we sat around talking. The guys were interested in how we got together and we told them. After a while Sara excused herself and came back a short time later.

"Where did you go?" I asked

"Bathroom" she replied. I knew that she wasn't being quite truthful but I let it slide for now.

We sat around as the beers kept flowing and listened to peoples attempts at singing on Karaoke.

"Well up next we have a young lady who wants to sing 'Angel' by Sarah McLachlan for her girlfriend." said the DJ "Please put your hands together and welcome up Sara Sidle"

I looked at sara shocked as she stood up. She just shrugged her shoulders and made her way to the stage. The guys clapped and cheered as she made her way forward.

"This is for Catherine" she said when she was given the mike "this song has helped me through many hard times especially as you are my angel. I love you"

I could feel the tears slipping down my face at her openly public declaration of love.

I sat and listened to the words as I could picture everything that she had been through.

_You spend all your time waiting_

_For that second chance_

_For the break that will make it ok_

_There's always some reason_

_To feel not good enough_

_And its hard at the end of the day_

_I need some distraction_

_Oh, beautiful release_

_Memories seep from veins_

_Let me be empty_

_Oh and weightless and maybe_

_I'll find some peace tonight._

I sat there as I remembered all the times that she had felt bad about her job, cases that she was unable to solve, victims that she couldn't help. I also thought about how even from a young age her parents always put her down, saying that she would never amount to anything.

_In the arms of the angel_

_Fly away from here_

_From this dark cold hotel room_

_And the endlessness that you fear_

_You are pulled from the wreckage_

_Of your silent revriere_

_You're in the arms of your angel_

_May you find some comfort here_.

I could just image as sara was tied to the bed by her mother wanting to escape from her surroundings. I could see her trying to get loose as the blows kept raining down on her body. The tears kept flowing down my face as I watched her sing, I could see the truth behind the words as she put her whole soul into it.

_You're so tired of the straight line_

_And everywhere you turn_

_There's vultures and thieves at your back_

_The storm keeps on twisting_

_You keep on building the lies_

_That you make up for all that you lack_

_It don't make no difference_

_Escaping one last time_

_It's easier to believe_

_In this sweet madness_

_Oh, this glorious sadness_

_That brings me to my knees_

I watched remembering how sara was in the hospital. How she was trapped in her own mind unable to move or speak. Trying so desperately to come back to us but not knowing the way. I remember her telling me about seeing her grandpa and how he told her to return to me. I couldn't wait for her to come back over here so I could pull her into a hug.

_In the arms of the angel_

_Fly away from here_

_From this dark cold hotel room_

_And the endlessness that you fear_

_You are pulled from the wreckage_

_Of your silent reverie_

_You're in the arms of the angel_

_May you find some comfort here._

She turned towards me at this point and looked me directly in the eyes as she sang the last two lines

_You're in the arms of the angel_

_May you find some comfort here._

As sara handed back the mike to the DJ I rushed over to her and pulled her into a massive kiss. I heard the guys cheering behind me in fact the whole bar was applauding Sara's performance.

"Baby, I love you" I said pulling her into the hug "You have a fantastic voice, you should sing more often"

"Only for you cat, only for you" she replied. We made our way back to the guys who congratulated her on a spectacular performance so much that sara went very red.

A short while later I announced to the guys that sara and I were leaving. When she looked at me confused I leaned over to explain to her why I wanted to leave.

"Baby" I whispered in her ear "I want to show you how much I love you and I can't do that here"

She looks at me with lust filled eyes and I know she wants this just as much as I do.

"I don't want to push you into anything you're not ready for but I just want to be alone with you right now" I continue.

"I want you too cat" she replied "and I'm more than ready if you know what I mean"

With this I grabbed her by the hand and led her out of the door. The guys shouted their goodbyes after us and I just waved my hand at them to acknowledge that I'd heard them.

We grabbed a cab and went back to my place.

A/N: the next chapter will be about what happens when they get back to Catherine's. I'm not sure how much detail to write so it may take a while to get a version that is acceptable to post written. Hope you are enjoying this story. Please review.


	21. Chapter 21

-1**DISCLAIMER IS THE SAME AS CHAPTER 1.**

A/N: so here goes nothing. This is the first time I've attempted to write this so I hope you enjoy it. If you want a more detailed chapter send me a message and I'll email it to you but as it would probably be too graphic to post I've edited it some what.

A/N2: this contains some FEMSLASH so if you are offended please don't read this chapter as I want no flames later.

Chapter 21

SPOV

We started kissing the minute we entered her house. I know that we've shared passionate kisses before but this was like nothing I've ever experienced. I moaned into the kiss and she took the opportunity to slip her tongue into my mouth. We battled for dominance as I pushed her against the wall. My hands slowly made their way under her top and started stroking the skin of her stomach. As they made their way up to her breasts I could feel her breath hitch. She pulled me closer massaging my back as she did so. She broke away from me briefly and looked into my eyes with eyes full of lust and passion.

"Are you sure about this?" she ask

I smiled at he in return and pulled her in for another kiss.

"Bedroom" was all I replied as we broke away again.

I pulled her back in for another kiss as I lifted her slightly off the floor. She took the opportunity to wrap her legs around my waist so that I took all of her weight. I slowly led her towards the bedroom kissing her the entire time. As we stepped into the room I slowly lowered her to the ground.

I started undoing the buttons on her shirt as we continued to kiss. Her hands had disappeared under my top as she began to stroke my back. As I got her shirt undone I could see the lacy bra she wore and proceeded to move my hands round to her back. I struggled slightly but soon had her bra undone. As I removed her shirt and her bra I bent down to slowly kiss her breasts, teasing her nipples as I did so.

She released a sensual moan as I felt her nipples react to my touch. SHe then pulled my top over my head and removed my bra before I realised what she had done. She then brought her hands up to massage my breasts and this time it was me that moaned.

I gently pushed her onto the bed and began to unzip her pants. I pulled them down along with her underwear, removing her shoes and socks as I made my way down.

"You're beautiful" I said as I proceeded to kiss her again.

"And you are wearing to many clothes" she replied and began to remove the remainder of my clothing.

We spent the next few hours worshipping each other and getting to know what we both enjoyed. We had both reached many climaxes before we fell asleep in each others arms.

The next morning I awoke smiling as I pulled her closer to me.

"Morning" she said sleepily as she slowly woke up.

"Hey baby" I replied "you sleep ok"

"the best I've ever slept" she replied "How about you?"

"Never better" I said "I didn't even have any nightmares thanks to you. I love you so much baby"

"Move in with me" she asked suddenly "I never want to be without you beside me again"

"I'd love to" I replied "you will never know how much you mean to me but I'm sure that I can try"

With that I proceeded to make love to Catherine all over again.

A few hours later we both knew that Catherine would have to get ready for work and that I'd have to pick Lindsey up from Nancy's house. As she made her way to the bathroom she looked over at me and smiled.

"join me?" she asked.

"I'd love to" I said getting out of bed.

We made our way into the bathroom and Catherine turned on the shower. As she stepped inside I couldn't help wonder at how good my life had turned out. I quickly joined her and we began to wash each others bodies. There was nothing sexual about our shower but we both craved the intimacy that it involved.

Once we were both washed and dressed we grabbed a quick coffee before leaving the house. I gave her a passionate kiss before we made our way to work. Once there I kissed her again before jumping into my car and went and picked up Lindsey.


	22. Chapter 22

-1**DISCLAIMER IS THE SAME AS CHAPTER 1.**

A/N: I know that I said there was only 2 chapters left to go but the story decided to take a different turn. There is only 1 chapter left to go after this so I hope you've enjoyed reading. Many thanks to all your reviews but please keep them coming.

Chapter 22

SPOV

"Hey baby girl" I said as she answered the door "How do you feel about doing some shopping?"

"I'd love to" she replied "There's a new CD out that I wanted"

"great, lets go" I said and we made our way to the car.

"Lindsey, there is something important I need to talk to you about"

"You and mum aren't breaking up are you?" she asks quietly

"On the contrary" I replied "your mum has just asked me to move in with you. How do you feel about that?"

"Fantastic" she shouted "I love you and you're great for my mum so I can't wait for you to move in"

"I'm glad you feel that way and for the record I love you to" I said. I gave her a big hug before starting the car.

"But that isn't all I wanted to talk to you about" I continued "How would you feel if I asked you mum to marry me?"

"Really. You mean that!" she said excitedly "Cool. You'd be like my second mum"

"You sure you don't have a problem with it?" I ask again

"No way, I'd love for you to marry my mum" she reassures me.

"Good, that's why I need to go shopping. I need to buy a ring and I need your help"

"Well lets get going then" she says "there's no time like the present"

I had to laugh at her eagerness as I put the car into drive and we made our way to the local mall. You have to love Vegas the shops are open at all times here for almost anything you are looking for.

We step out of the car and make our way to the first jewellers we find. Once here we look through all the rings and find a perfect little ring. It is in the style of an eternity ring with a small row of diamonds. It is also white gold which would look spectacular on Catherine's finger. After making sure we've got the right size we buy the ring and make our way out. I buy the CD that Lindsey wanted as a thank you for letting me into her life.

Once we arrived home we watch some TV before it was time for Lindsey to go to bed. She gave me a quick kiss and hug before making her way to bed.

CPOV

I couldn't help smiling the entire time I was working. Sara agreeing to move in with me was like a dream come true. Having finished processing the evidence on my latest case I decided to give her a call. I knew full well that she would still be awake as it was still relatively early but I just had to hear her voice.

"Sidle" she says automatically

"Hey sexy" I say back "what you up to?"

"Nothing much" she replies "I took Lindsey shopping earlier and then we watched some TV before I sent her to bed."

"Really, what did you buy?" I ask

"I bought a CD for Lindsey as a thank you for letting me into her life. I hope you don't mind but I kind of told her that you'd asked me to move in with you. I wanted to make sure that she was ok with this. I know that you probably wanted to tell her yourself but it came up, I'm sorry." she said.

I could tell she was worried about my reaction as she was rambling so I quickly put her at ease.

"I don't mind baby" I said "in fact I'd forgotten to ask her myself. I'm glad that you feel that you could talk to Lindsey about this. What did she say?"

"She said that she was happy about me moving in and that I was a part of your lives" she replied "Anyway, how's work?"

"I've just wrapped up another case so it's time to do all the paperwork I've been avoiding for a while which is why I thought I'd give you a call." I said "I just couldn't stop thinking about you. I love you baby"

"I love you to angel" she replied "I'd better let you get back to work but I'll see you when you get home"

"Bye hunny" I said. With that I hung up the phone and got back to work.

When it came time to leave work I threw all the paperwork into my drawer and made my way to the locker room. Grabbing my stuff I barely stopped to say goodbye to the guys on my way out.

Driving home I couldn't wait to see Sara and I knew that I had a stupid grin on my face.

I quietly let myself into the house as I knew that everyone would probably be sleeping. It was a Saturday so I knew that Lindsey couldn't possibly be up at this time of day, she loved her lie ins. I was surprised however to hear laughing coming from the kitchen. I walked in to see the pair of them wearing aprons and gathered around a bowl on the side.

"hey beautiful" said Sara looking up as I walked in "I'm just teaching Lindsey here how to make proper pancakes, not that rubbish in a box you can buy"

I laughed when I saw a streak of flour down Lindsey's cheek as she looked up at me. My stomach growled in response to the food so I grabbed a cup of coffee and waited for them to finish. I was so moved at the scene that the two of them made. Sara had always said she wasn't good with kids but watching her with Lindsey my heart was full of love.

A short while later we were all sat around the table eating pancakes as a family and we discussed what we were going to do for the remainder of the day. Neither Sara or I had to work tonight so we decided that after I'd had a nap, during which time Sara was going to help Lindsey with her homework, we would all go to the park and have a picnic as it was such a nice day.

After breakfast I made my way to my room for a rest whilst Sara washed the dishes and Lindsey dried. I closed my eyes thinking about how lucky I was that Sara had come into my life.


	23. Chapter 23

-1**DISCLAIMER IS THE SAME AS CHAPTER 1.**

A/N: So here is the last chapter for you all to enjoy. I hope you've enjoyed the story. I'm toying with the idea of a sequel at the moment. What do you think? Should I continue this story or just write a new one? As you can see I'm all for happy endings. Please keep the reviews coming. Many thanks for sticking with me till the end. Sarah

Chapter 23

SPOV

Whilst Catherine took a nap I helped Lindsey with her homework. I was really nervous about tonight. I'd decided that I would ask Catherine to marry me tonight but I needed Lindsey's help to do so.

"Lindsey" I say "I need your help tonight"

"Sure Sara" she replied " what do you need?"

"Well I'm planning on asking your mum tonight so I need you to distract her for a few hours whilst I prepare I nice meal for us"

"Sure," she replied "I'll make her take me to the arcade and you can fake a headache or something"

"I want you to be there at the meal as well. You are as much a part of this relationship as any of us and I want you to be there to congratulate your mum, if she says yes" I said

"Of course she'll say yes, she loves you" she replied "and I'd be honoured to be there when you pop the question"

We spent a while discussing what I should cook before we made our way downstairs to prepare the food for the picnic. Not long afterwards Catherine made her way into the kitchen. She gave me a quick kiss before ruffling Lindsey's hair. She grabbed a quick cup of coffee before we made our way to the park. We spent the afternoon enjoying the sun as we played Frisbee with Lindsey. As the sun was starting to set I nudged Lindsey to start our plans rolling.

"Mum" she asked "Can we go to the arcade?"

"I'm not sure Lindsey its getting late" she replied

"Please," Lindsey whined "just for a short time"

"OK then" said Catherine "You coming?" she says to me

"Actually I think I'm going to head back" I said "I've got a bit of a headache and all that noise will just make it worse. You go and spend some time just the two of you"

"You sure, we can all go home if you want us to"

"I'm fine baby, you go and have fun and I'll see you in a while" I replied.

With that we went our separate ways. I rushed home to get the dinner started. Once it was all cooking in the oven I prepared the table and got out the champagne. I was glad that there was a local store on my way home from the park where I could pick up everything that I needed for the meal. I had just put everything on the table and cleared up the kitchen as I heard the door go.

"Something smells good" I heard from the doorway.

"I thought I'd cook you both something extra special tonight as a big thank you." I said.

I ushered them both to the table and we started on the main course. We kept the conversation light as we savoured the food that I had made. I caught Lindsey looking at me several times but I just shook my head to signal now wasn't the time.

After I had cleared the table I brought out the desert. I gave Lindsey a slight nod as now was the time.

As I placed the pudding on the table I turned towards Catherine and I hoped that all my dreams were about to come true.

"Cat, there was another reason for this dinner tonight" I started "There was something that I wanted to ask you. You have done so much for me and you mean so much to me that I never want to spend another day without you. I love you and Lindsey so much that you have become a family to me."

I took a deep breath, and pulling the box out of my pocket I continue.

"Cat, baby, I would love nothing better than to make this all official, will you marry me?" with that I got on my knees and opened the box to show the ring inside.

Catherine took a long time gazing into my eyes before replying.

"Sara Sidle, I would love nothing more than to be your wife, yes I will marry you." she replies.

I take the ring out of the box and slide it on her finger before pulling her into a kiss.

"You've made me the happiest woman on the earth" I said kissing her again. I then released her as Lindsey came flying round the table to congratulate her mum.

"I knew you would say yes, didn't I Sara, that's what I said yesterday when you asked me" said Lindsey

"So that's why it came up about you moving in" Catherine said as I blushed "and the main reason for going shopping as well"

"Busted" Lindsey said

"Yes it was" I replied "I couldn't do anything without knowing that Lindsey was ok with everything. She means the world to you so I was glad to get her blessing" I pulled Lindsey into a big hug before releasing her back to her mother.

We then settled down to eat desert before clearing up and settling down to watch a movie with Lindsey.

Once Lindsey had gone to bed, Catherine and I took the remainder of the champagne and went and sat outside by the pool. I sat on one of the sun lounges and pulled Catherine to sit in front of me. She lent back against me as she sat down. It was such a clear evening that you could see all the stars in the sky.

I couldn't help smiling as I remembered the last time I had seen the sky this clearly.

"What you thinking about" asked Catherine

"Us" I replied "last time I saw the stars like this was that time I got drenched after leaving you all at the club. Somehow I had a sense of peace that everything would be alright."

"I know what you mean" she replied "When you were in the hospital I had a sense of calm pass over me when I looked at the stars"

We both knew that the beauty above us was a sight that many people wouldn't even notice but for us it was destiny.

"I love you" I said simply as I hugged her.

"I love you too" she said relaxing into me.

"You know what" I said "I think you and me were always meant to be and that's why we were both at peace under the night sky.

"It was written in the stars" you replied.

A/N: And that is where we leave it. I hope you've enjoyed it. I know I loved writing it. Please review and if you think that a sequel would be a good idea let me know.


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